Diving in Port Charlotte area?

[trigfunctions]

Hi all - I live in Ft. Lauderdale and my uncle-in-law-of-sorts lives in Port Charlotte. He just got certified and he has a pretty nice sailboat. I don't know anything about the divining on the west coast of FLA.

Is there any good easy diving in that area this time of year (specifically, 5/12)? Anything that we could dive from his sailboat? Or, any charters you would recommend for a newbie?

Thanks, trig

 

[Walter]

Invite him over to dive with you until he has some experience and is very comfortable. Then there are some great site offshore Port Charlotte.

 

[Cacia]

sannabell island? the shell place? Unless you get offshore, isn't the tanic acid a problem, Walter?

 

[Walter]

Sanibel Island - the shell place. It's south of Port Charlotte, no good shore diving. There is some good shore dives at Boca Grande, but they are advanced dives. Off shore there are lots of excellent dives, but I don't recommend them for beginners. The run off from the rivers and steams do play havoc with viz, especially with the way the South Florida Water Management District has been doing it's best to destroy all life in the Gulf.

 

[ReefGuy]

Walter, what wrong with sites like Trembly and Novack reef? Palm Beach Ferry? The vis isn't what it is on the other coast, but it's not unusual to get 20'-30' on these sites, and they're reasonably close to shore.

Catherine, Tannic acid is a problem in Charlotte harbor, but not once you get around Boca Grande Pass.

 

[Walter]

Never heard of them, Jeff.

 

[ffestpirate]

Hi Walter. I wasn't aware of shore dives off of Boca Grande. Where at?

 

[Walter]

Phosphate docks. Great dive.

 

[ffestpirate]

Excellent! Thank you. Didn't mean to hijack this thread.

 

[ReefGuy]

Phosphate docks can no longer be accessed by shore. You need a boat. Tricky and extreme current here, so dive with caution. Also, I was talking with a fishing charter captain yesterday, and he says the tarpon are in the pass now, so unless you want to see some big sharks, I'd wait for this dive until around August.

Walter, Trembly reef sits in 30' of water, around 4 miles NW of the pass. Novack reef is not far from Trembly, and sits in 45'. Palm Island Ferry is further out and sits in 60'. I've got numbers, if we can scare up a ride, I'll be happy to introduce you .

If you're looking for charters, give Captain Jeff (Spairtime) a call at (941) 380-5313. He's out of Placida (approx 30 minutes from Pt. Charlotte).